“Oh, I mean you’ve been born long enough to accomplish quite a great deal, on the whole, and the finest work you ever put in was up at Little Homespun yesterday.”
“You mean about asking Miss Courage to come back?”
“Exactly. I think your name will always stick to you now—I’m sure I shall never call you by any other——”
“You mean my name. Brevet?”
“Yes.”
“But why? I do not quite understand,” for Brevet’s ideas had really grown a little hazy as to the full meaning of his name.
“Why, Joe gave you the name, you remember, because that is a title given in the army simply as a reward of merit. You have the honour, that is, of being a captain without the responsibility. Now it seems to me the title belongs to you more than ever since yesterday afternoon. You sailed right in and have won all the glory of persuading Miss Courage to come back to Virginia, but I do not see that you have assumed a grain of responsibility. It is a serious thing to have induced her to exchange her home for ours. Now who’s going to see when she comes that she’s always perfectly happy and contented, I’d like to know?”
“You are the one to see to that, Uncle Harry. Isn’t that what husbands have to do? Besides, I don’t think it’s fair to blame me when you yourself wanted her so much to come.”
“Blame! bless your dear little heart! who thought of blame for a minute? Irresponsible little rascal though you be, you have earned your proud title and Brevet you shall be to the end of the chapter.”
Brevet did not quite understand this either, but that did not matter. He knew that he had succeeded in making everybody very happy, Uncle Harry in particular, and for the present that was quite enough to know and to understand.